Oracle cuts 21,000 jobs amid AI spending

• Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) reduced its workforce by about 21,000 jobs over the past year during its AI data center expansion.
• The company reported $55.7 billion in capital spending in fiscal 2026 alongside negative free cash flow of $23.7 billion.
• Oracle says its $638 billion in remaining performance obligations reflects long-term contracted demand, including a $300 billion OpenAI deal.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) cut about 21,000 full-time jobs over the past year while accelerating its investment in AI data center infrastructure.

The workforce reduction comes as Oracle’s headcount fell to 141,000 from 162,000 in 2025, alongside a sharp increase in spending tied to artificial intelligence expansion.

The company reported $55.7 billion in capital expenditures for fiscal 2026 and adjusted revenue of $67.4 billion, while also reporting remaining performance obligations worth $638 billion, including a $300 billion agreement with OpenAI for data center capacity.

Meanwhile, Oracle has expanded AI infrastructure spending alongside other major tech companies, as Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Meta (NASDAQ:META), and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) collectively scale data center and chip investments.

The company’s free cash flow fell to negative $23.7 billion in fiscal 2026, reflecting a nearly 6,000% decline linked to higher capital expenditure outflows.

Investor sentiment remains cautious as Oracle stock is down about 10% year-to-date and over 14% in the past year, while peers such as Google are up 107%, Amazon is up 11%, Microsoft is down 23%, and Meta is down 17%.